TV viewing system

ABSTRACT

An apparatus is provided that enables a person reclined on a bed to comfortably view a television screen (36) that is set up for ordinary viewing, which is small and lightweight, of low cost, and easily used. The apparatus includes a frame (64) that can be mounted on a wall (66) and a pair of mirrors (60, 62) mounted on the frame. A first of the mirrors (60) lies above the head (H) of the reclined viewer so he can comfortably view the first mirror, while the second mirror (62) lies lower and forward of the first mirror to reflect light from the screen toward the first mirror, with the first mirror then reflecting the light to the viewer. The frame includes a wall mount (72) that lies behind and above the viewer&#39;s head, an arm (64) extending forwardly from the mount, and a mirror support lying at the outer end, or forward end, of the arm. Each of the mirrors is pivotally mounted on the mirror support about a primarily horizontal axis to allow the viewer to look up or down. The inner end of the arm is pivotally mounted on the wall mount about a vertical axis (130), so the entire apparatus can be readily swung against the wall, and then swung to a position above the viewer to look forward. The mirror support is pivotally mounted about a largely vertical axis (128) on the outer end of the arm to look to the left or right.

CROSS REFERENCE

This is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent application Ser. No.08/904,822 filed Aug. 1, 1997, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,997,147.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Television and computer screens are usually mounted at a height of aboutthree feet above the ground and face primarily horizontally, forcomfortable viewing by a seated person. People who are reclined on a bedoften wish to view the screen, but find it uncomfortable to do so. Inhospitals, a television is often mounted near the ceiling and faces at adownward incline for viewing by a patient reclined on a bed. However, itis inconvenient to mount a television in that position, and in thatposition it is uncomfortable to view the television screen when seated.A relatively simple apparatus that allowed a person reclined on a bed toview a screen set up for direct viewing by a seated person, would be ofvalue.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In accordance with one embodiment of the present invention, an apparatusis provided that aids in viewing a screen by a reclined viewer, which isof low cost and lightweight construction, easy to install and set up,and easily moved out of the way. The apparatus includes a frame and apair of mirrors mounted on the frame. A first of the mirrors ispositioned primarily directly above the eyes of the viewer for easydirect viewing by him/her, while the second mirror is positioned belowand forward of the first to reflect light from the screen to the firstmirror so the first mirror can reflect the light to the viewer. The useof two mirrors provides an image that enables reading of words on thescreen (not a "mirror image"), while facilitating adjustment.

One apparatus Includes a wall mount for mounting directly on a verticalwall of a room or of a bed headboard. An arm extending forwardly fromthe wall mount has an arm outer end that supports a mirror holder onwhich the two mirrors are held. The mirrors are pivotally mounted aboutparallel, primarily horizontal axes on the mirror holder for adjustmentto view up or down. The arm has an inner end that is pivotally mountedabout a vertical axis on the wall mount, to allow the arm and mirrorholder to pivot so the mirror holder lies near the wall and is out ofthe way of the viewer when the viewer rises from the bed. The mirrorsupport is pivotable on the arm outer end to view to the left or right

The novel features of the invention are set forth with particularity inthe appended claims. The invention will be best understood from thefollowing description when read in conjunction with the accompanyingdrawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a side elevation view of apparatus constructed in accordancewith the present invention, showing how it is used to view a screen.

FIG. 2 is an isometric view of one viewing apparatus shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a plan view of the apparatus of FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 is a front elevation view of another viewing apparatus shown inFIG. 1.

FIG. 5 is a side elevation view of another mirror arrangement that canbe used in the apparatus of FIG. 1.

FIG. 6 is a side elevation view of still another mirror arrangement.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

FIG. 1 shows a room 10 containing a monitor 12 for a television orcomputer. The monitor lies on a stand 14 and can be comfortably viewedby a person with an upright upper body, as when the person is seated.The figure also shows a bed 16 in the room, and a reclined person Plying on the bed, with the head H of the person at the rear of the bedand on a pillow. The eyes or viewing position 20 of the person lies nearthe rear of the bed, about eight inches above the bed, and facesprimarily upward, though usually with a forward incline from thevertical of about 15°. The screen can be viewed from the viewingposition 20 by a first viewing apparatus 22 that applicant earlier builtand tested, and by a second viewing apparatus 24 that applicant hasbuilt and tested and which applicant believes is superior to the firstone.

The first viewing apparatus 22 includes a frame 30 and a pair of mirrors32, 34 mounted on the frame. The first mirror 32 is positioned to bedirectly viewed by the reclined viewer. The second mirror 34 ispositioned to reflect light from the screen 36 of the monitor toward thefirst mirror 32, so the first mirror can reflect it to the viewer at theviewing position 20. The frame 30 is designed to mount directly againstthe ceiling wall 40 of the room, at a fixed position. A first universaljoint 42, which allows the first mirror to pivot about two perpendicularhorizontal axes, is held on a wall mount 44 of the frame. The frame alsoincludes a holder 46 comprising top and bottom bars, and comprising apair of parallel side bars 50, 52 that support the lower mirror 34through another universal joint 54. At some positions of the mirrors,each of them lies directly between the side bars 50, 52.

The first viewing apparatus 22 enabled good viewing of the screen, butrequired relatively large mirrors and a tall holder 46. The large sizeof the mirrors and holder resulted in substantial cost and weight forthem. The weight, though only a few pounds, Is important to the viewer,because the viewer is often afraid that the viewing apparatus will fallfrom the ceiling and hit the viewer, especially in the event of anearthquake. The fact that the holder 46 was fixed in position on theceiling, resulted in the need for universal joints to assure that theimage of the screen was reflected to the viewer. The long path of thereflected light made the screen appear about 70% further than the directdistance between the viewer at 20 and the screen 36.

The second viewing apparatus 24 of FIG. 1 also includes first and secondmirrors 60, 62 that are mounted on a frame 64 that is held to a roomwall, the particular wall shown being a vertical wall 66 that liesrearward R of the person, or viewer. As in the case of the firstapparatus, the first mirror 60 is positioned to be comfortably directlyviewed from the viewing position 20, and the second mirror 62 ispositioned and oriented to direct light from the screen 36 to the firstmirror 60 for reflection therefrom to the viewer.

FIG. 2 illustrates details of the second viewing apparatus 24. The frame64 includes an arm 65 having an inner end 70 that is supported by a wallmount 72 and having an outer end 74 that supports a mirror holder 76.The mirror holder includes a primarily horizontal beam 80 and a pair ofside beams 82, 84. Each of the mirrors 60, 62 is pivotally mounted abouta corresponding axis 90, 92 on the side beams 82, 84. The two axes 90,92 are parallel and primarily horizontal. It may be noted that eachmirror such as mirror 60 includes a coated glass reflector 94 held by alargely plate-like member 96 that includes an enlarged middle 98. A pairof pins 100, 102 (or one rod) extend through the enlarged middle 98 topivotally support the mirror. The first pin 102 is in the form of ascrew with a knob 104 at the end that can be turned to tighten the firstmirror against the side beam 84 to fix the first mirror pivotalposition. The second mirror 62 is similarly held.

The arm 65 includes a horizontal adjustment part 110 that has a slider112 that can slide inwardly and outwardly within a trough 114, with ascrew 116 projecting through a slot in the bottom of the trough to fixthe slide in place. This allows the mirror support 76 to be movedinwardly and outwardly, which are directions parallel to the rearwardand forward directions R, F for the illustrated arm position. The armalso has a link 120 with inner and outer ends pivotally connectedrespectfully to the slide 112 and to the mirror support 76 to enable themirror support to tilt about two horizontal axes 122, 124. A ball jointat 126 allows the mirror support to pivot about three perpendicularaxes, including the primarily vertical axis 128. The sliding and tiltingpermit versatile adjustment of the position and orientation of themirrors, with the axes of the mirrors remaining parallel. Instead ofusing a horizontal adjust part 110, it is possible to provide anadditional link that is pivotally connected about horizontal axes at itsopposite ends. It is possible to allow pivoting about a vertical axis atthe outer end of the arm. Also, instead of using two mirrors, fourmirrors or prisms can be used, although these are not preferred. Prismsare not preferred because prisms of a few inches width and length areheavy and expensive.

The arm inner end 70 is pivotally mounted about a vertical axis 130 onthe wall mount 72. This allows the mirrors to lie closely above theperson's head, and still allow the person to easily lit himself from thebed. Before lifting himself from the bed by raising his head, the personpivots the arm about the vertical axis 130, as to the position 65A sothe mirrors and mirror supports 76 are not closely above the person'shead. Applicant prefers to define a region or position primarilydirectly above a person's head, as shown in FIG. 5, within an angle A ofno more than 60° from the vertical V (which passes through 20) in adirection forward of the viewing position 20, and within at an angle Bof no more than 10° from the vertical in a direction to the rear of theviewing position. The mirror (e.g. 140) directly viewed by the viewershould lie in this region. The fact that the arm pivots at 130, alsoallows easy adjustment to view television screens that are not directlyforward (F) at the bed.

Applicant has constructed and tested a viewing apparatus of the typeillustrated in FIG. 2. The first, or directly viewed mirror 60 had awidth and length of 4.5 inches, while the second mirror 62 had a length(in directions F. R) of 5.5 inches and a width of 4.5 inches. The armhad a usual length (as shown In FIG. 2) of about two feet in its fullyextended position. The entire apparatus had a weight of fifteen ounces.The small size of the mirrors and arm resulted in an apparatus ofmoderate cost, with the low weight enabling easy secure mounting on thewall. The small weight and the fact that the apparatus usually lay lessthan one foot above the viewers head, avoided any fear in most viewersthat they might be injured if the apparatus dropped, as in the event ofan earthquake or because of poor mounting. The fact that the mirrorswere pivotable and the link 120 was pivoted at its opposite ends,resulted in avoidance of harm to the viewer even if the viewer's headwas raised in the middle of the night before the arm was pivoted out ofthe way, with the viewers head not being injured and not damaging theapparatus. In FIG. 1, the viewing distance to the screen by lightreflected from the mirrors 60, 62 is only 15% greater than the directdistance from the screen 36 to the viewer at 20.

A variety of dual mirror arrangements can be used, including thearrangement shown in FIG. 5 that includes two mirrors 140, 142 and thearrangement of FIG. 6 that includes two mirrors 150 and 152. Applicanthas tried the various arrangements, and found that the arrangement shownfor the apparatus 24 of FIG. 1 was superior in positioning the mirrorsclose together and at a low height above the viewer.

Although FIG. 1 shows the frame 64 held by a mount 72 fastened to thevertical wall 66 of the room, it is also possible to fasten the mount toa headboard wall 160 formed by a bed headboard. It is also possible touse a separate support indicated at 170 that lies on the bed or on thefloor of the room. However, applicants mounting on a vertical wall suchas 66 of the room, enables secure, steady, and easy mounting.

Although it is anticipated that the viewing will be primarily of atelevision screen, and sometimes of a computer monitor screen, there areoccasions where the viewer wishes to view other scenes, such as the viewoutside a window or of visiting relatives.

Thus, the invention provides apparatus for aiding in the viewing of ascene such as a picture on a monitor screen, by a reclined viewer. Theapparatus includes a frame and a pair of mirrors mounted on the frame. Afirst mirror is positioned for easy direct viewing by the viewer, whilethe second mirror is positioned and oriented to reflect light from thescene or screen to the first mirror. A preferred apparatus includesrelatively small mirrors lying within one meter and preferably no morethan eighteen inches above the viewing position formed by the reclinedperson's eyes, with the mirrors held by a frame that is mounted on avertical wall in the room. The frame preferably includes an arm with aninner end that is pivotally mounted about a vertical axis on a wallmount, so the arm can be pivoted to move the mirrors out of the way ofthe reclined person when he/she is rising.

Although particular embodiments of the invention have been described andillustrated herein, it is recognized that modifications and variationsmay readily occur to those skilled in the art, and consequently, it isintended that the claims be interpreted to cover such modifications andequivalents.

What is claimed is:
 1. Apparatus for aiding in the viewing of a pictureon a screen by a reclined viewer, comprising:a mirror support and a pairof mirrors mounted on said mirror support, said pair of mirrorsincluding a first mirror that can be directly viewed by the reclinedviewer and a second mirror positioned to direct light from the screentoward the first mirror; a wall mount for mounting on a vertical wall ina room, a primarily horizontal-extending arm with an arm inner end, anda pivot joint that pivotally couples said arm inner end about a verticalaxis to said wall mount with said arm having an arm outer end thatsupports said mirror support, with said pivot joint allowing sufficientpivoting about said vertical axis to enable the mirror support to bemoved to lie substantially against said wall and out of the way as wellas to enable the mirror support to be adjusted in position when saidfirst mirror is positioned to be viewed; said pivot joint permits saidarm to pivot only about a vertical axis, but not a horizontal axis, andsaid arm includes inner and outer arm parts coupled by a second jointthat permits said arm outer part to pivot about a horizontal axis. 2.Apparatus for aiding in the viewing of a picture on a screen by areclined viewer, comprising:a mirror support and a pair of mirrorsmounted on said mirror support, said pair of mirrors including a firstmirror that can be directly viewed by the reclined viewer and a secondmirror positioned to direct light from the screen toward the firstmirror; a wall mount for mounting on a vertical wall in a room, aprimarily horizontally-extending arm with an inner end, and a pivotjoint that pivotally couples said arm inner end about a vertical axis tosaid wall mount with said arm having an arm outer end that supports saidmirror support, with said pivot joint allowing sufficient pivoting aboutsaid vertical axis to enable the mirror support to be moved to liesubstantially against said wall and out of the way as well as to enablethe mirror support to be adjusted in position when said first mirror ispositioned to be viewed; said first mirror lies higher and more rearwardthan said second mirror, said second mirror is oriented to direct lightthat moves rearwardly and horizontally from said screen to said firstmirror, at a rearward and upward incline to said first mirror, and saidfirst mirror is oriented to direct light received from said secondmirror at a rearward and downward incline to the reclined viewer. 3.Apparatus for aiding in the viewing of a picture on a screen by areclined viewer who faces largely upward, where the screen liesprimarily forward and horizontally spaced from the viewer, comprising:aframe and a pair of mirror mounted on said frame, to lie above andlargely forward of the viewer, said pair of mirrors including a firstmirror that can be directly viewed by the reclined viewer and a secondmirror positioned to direct light from the screen toward the firstmirror; said first mirror lying higher and more rearward than saidsecond mirror, said second mirror being oriented to direct light thatmoves rearwardly and substantially horizontally from said screen to saidsecond mirror, at a rearward and upward incline to said first mirror,and said first mirror being oriented to direct light received from saidsecond mirror at a rearward and downward incline to the reclined viewer,to thereby provide a compact apparatus; said frame includes a mirrorsupport, a mount for mounting on a wall or other support, and an armhaving a rear end pivotally mounted about a primarily vertical axis onsaid mount and having a front arm end, with said mirror supportpivotally mounted about a primarily vertical axis on said arm front end.